Jamie Oliver Proper Blokes' Sausage Fusilli

Confession: I've made this dish many times before. But that's why I decided to blog about it. It's actually one of my all-time favs. The flavours are just beautiful. There's a perfect balance between savory, spicy and citrus freshness. And just in case you didn't know, Jamie Oliver is my secret boyfriend. I love his recipes so much. I know some people hate the way he never gives you the proper measurements, but I love that. A wineglass of wine or a handful of parmesan cheese, it just speaks to my cooking style. And the flavours of his dishes never disappoint. He knows the way to my heart.

Note: please listen to my boyfriend and only use good quality sausages. If you're a Torontonian, you can get your sausages at MEATing on Queen, the best sausages in the city in my humble opinion. I usually get the Moraccan Pork or Moraccan Chicken sausages for this dish because the spices in the recipe are simple enough to let the sausages be the star. And they really should be, they are phenomenal. I mean look at them, gorgeous no?

Last note, I couldn't find any dried chili peppers so I used 2 small fresh chili's, deseeded, which worked perfect.

Proper blokes' sausage fusilli

This is a real blokey, gutsy yet simple pasta dish – but saying that, girls tend to like it as well! It hasn't really got a sauce of any description because all the flavour that comes out of the ingredients will stick to the pasta and that's enough. I will even go so far as to say that this is one of my top ten pasta dishes! Remember to buy the best sausages you can afford – if you get cheap, dodgy sausages it just won't work.

Serves 4

Ingredients
2 heaped teaspoons fennel seeds
2 dried red chillies, crumbled
olive oil
400 g quality coarse Italian or Cumberland sausages
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 small wineglass white wine
zest and juice of 1 lemon
320 g good-quality fusilli or penne
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil
1 small handful Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, plus extra for serving
1 small bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and chopped

Method
Bash up the fennel seeds and chillies in a pestle and mortar or Flavour Shaker until coarsely crushed, then put to one side. Heat a splash of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan. Squeeze the meat out of the sausage skins and put into the pan, really breaking it up using the back of a spoon. Fry for a few minutes until the meat starts to colour and the fat has rendered slightly, then crush it once more so it resembles coarse mince. Add the bashed-up fennel seeds and chillies and cook on a medium heat for around 10 minutes until the meat becomes crisp, golden brown and slightly caramelized.

Stir in your oregano, then pour in the white wine and allow it to reduce by half. Add the lemon zest and juice. Turn the heat down to low while you cook your pasta in a large pan of salted boiling water according to the packet instructions. When the pasta has cooked al dente, drain it in a colander, reserving some of the cooking water, and toss it in the pan with your sausagemeat. Coat the pasta in all the lovely flavours then add a lug of olive oil, the Parmesan, chopped parsley and a few spoonfuls of the reserved cooking water. This will give you a lovely loose, shiny sauce. Taste and check for seasoning, then serve immediately with a little extra grated Parmesan sprinkled over the top.